BTS’ North America tour shakes things up… ‘BTS Boulevard’ opens in Toronto for a month, Maryland Gov. welcomes the seven members in a special video

BTS’ ‘ARIRANG’ dazzles North America… ‘BTS Boulevard’ runs for a month

Starting on the 21st, Toronto, Canada, will rename roads for 34 days… Maryland Gov. releases an unprecedented official welcome video

The group 'BTS (Bangtan Sonyeondan)''s new world tour 'ARIRANG' is sparking a nonstop global box-office frenzy. In North America, streets bearing the team name are being created, and local governors have even taken the unusual step of delivering welcome remarks themselves—prompting a string of honors from local governments.

‘BTS Boulevard’ cuts across downtown Toronto… a cultural phenomenon sweeping the North American continent

According to the music industry on the 10th, the Toronto City Council reviewed and approved a proposal to designate some road segments in the city as 'BTS Boulevard' from the 21st (local time, the same below) through the 23rd of next month—marking the group 'BTS''s concerts. In addition, the city government has received a request to officially proclaim the 22nd and 23rd, when the concerts are held, as 'BTS Weekend'.

In response, Big Hit Music, the group's agency, said, "We received inquiries from Toronto authorities about using 'intellectual property (IP)', and we are currently discussing the details." Beginning its North American tour this month with New York as the starting point, 'BTS' continues its large-scale 'stadium tour', with stops at the U.S. Baltimore M&T Bank Stadium on the 10th and 11th, the Arlington AT&T Stadium on the 15th and 16th, and the Rogers Stadium in Toronto, Canada, on the 22nd and 23rd.

Maryland Gov. 'Wes Moore', who oversees Baltimore, also fueled the excitement by posting a special message congratulating the concert on his official social media.

"This is huge"… Maryland Gov.'s unprecedented welcome that crosses language and borders

'Wes Moore' said in the video, "The single goal shared by the seven of us is to bind the world together as one, beyond the barriers of different cultures, regions, and languages." He then praised it, saying, "This is really huge."

In particular, the governor singled out each of the seven members—'RM', 'Jin', 'Suga', 'J-Hope', 'Jimin', 'V', and 'Jungkook'—and named them one by one, urging support with, "Welcome to Baltimore. Let’s all shout, all BTS 'ARMY' (the group’s fan club)!" The video aired Korean subtitles alongside English, drawing close attention from local fans.

This year’s world tour 'ARIRANG', which kicked off in April at the main stadium of Goyang Stadium, has left landmark footprints in major cities around the world. Earlier, in Mexico City, Mexican President 'Claudia Sheinbaum' personally presented commemorative plaques to the members, and at the Paris show, French President 'Emmanuel Macron' and his wife attended and watched the performance. In addition, El Paso County in Texas, in the United States, presented the 'Estimada Amigo' (dear friend) award and declared 'El Paso BTS Weekend', underscoring the members’ overwhelming 'global influence'.